Wishing for Salvation (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
“He was the heir to Seo Won Group—up until a few years ago.”
“Not anymore?”
“Yeah, now he never leaves the house at all. They say he handles all his work from home. He was in a serious car accident—some say he went blind, others say he can’t use his legs anymore. There are even rumors his face was badly scarred. Anyway, there are all sorts of rumors.”
“Then why hire a secretary?”
“I don’t know the details either. But they said if you’re willing to take the job, they’ll contact you right away. Honestly, that guy’s really pitiful.”
“What’s pitiful about him? He’s a chaebol. Besides, the department store you work at is part of Seo Won Group too.”
Ji An, chewing on ice coldly, shook her throbbing head and muttered,
“His father got hit by a hit-and-run and collapsed from the shock—he eventually passed away. Oh! And some even say he lost his girlfriend in that same accident and went completely insane. They say life is as fragile as a candle in the wind. Working at the lounge, you really feel like you’re in another world—but moments like this remind you even chaebols are just ordinary humans.”
Seon Kyung, who had been whispering as if revealing some grand secret, finally exhaled the breath she’d been holding and clapped her hands once.
“And the most important fact! The pay is equivalent to a team leader at a major corporation.”
Ji An, who had been listening indifferently and fiddling with something else, instantly straightened her back and jerked her chin up.
“Where should I contact?”
She’d barely sent her resume to the email address Seon Kyung gave her before the acceptance notice arrived.
They even wanted to hold the interview at the cafe where she was working part-time.
They always said academic ties, regional ties, and blood ties were essential.
The reply came so quickly it left her utterly bewildered.
Don’t get too excited—you still have the interview to get through.
This time, she intended to stay completely silent about the accident.
Whenever she tried explaining her long employment gap by listing reasons, interviewers invariably looked uncomfortable.
Was it a crime to have suffered?
After double-checking the appointment time, Ji An patted her cheeks to shake herself awake and took off her apron.
Just as she was settling down quietly at the table to recite her self-introduction, a young man and woman pushed open the door and walked in.
She’d assumed they were just an ordinary couple—but they whispered among themselves upon seeing Ji An, then approached her closely.
“Are you… Seo Ji An?”
“Yes, hello! I’m Seo Ji An.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Do Seok Won.”
“Look at this…”
Seok Won lightly nudged Yeon Ju, who’d been muttering in a daze, and sat down first.
“I’m Jang Yeon Ju. We met briefly before at the cafe, with Seon Kyung.”
“Oh, right! I heard you spoke highly of me—thank you.”
Ji An greeted them brightly, leaving the two across from her momentarily speechless.
It wasn’t easy holding a conversation while staring at a face identical to the late Seo Yoon.
Seok Won, uncharacteristically faltering, adjusted his stiffening neck as if trying to loosen a muscle knot.
He, Yeon Ju, and even Kang Hyun—who’d woken up much later—had all seen Seo Yoon’s final, broken state.
This wasn’t Han Seo Yoon. He knew she wasn’t Seo Yoon.
Even if they were identical twins, this was just too much.
“Um… by any chance…”
“Yes?”
“Do you have a twin sister you were separated from when you were young?”
While Do Seok Won hesitated over his first words, Yeon Ju suddenly leaned forward and cut in with the question.
“No, I’m an only child.”
“Are your parents your biological ones? Were you maybe adopted…?”
“Yes, they’re my biological parents. That question feels a bit rude, honestly.”
“I’m sorry—we just thought you looked so much like someone we know.”
Yeon Ju’s eyes drooped gloomily as she bowed her head deeply.
“But… wasn’t this supposed to be a job interview?”
Ji An’s brow furrowed as the strange questions continued.
Her parents had even been preparing a celebration party.
This whole situation was utterly incomprehensible.
“No, we really do intend to hire you, Ms. Seo Ji An.”
Sensing the atmosphere turning sour, Seok Won quickly composed his expression and handed over the employment contract he’d brought.
Twin or not—
His plan was simply to get her close to Kang Hyun.
“Oh, okay. So this is the contract.”
They hadn’t even clearly explained what the job entailed, and now this?
Ji An, about to snap at the rude interviewer who’d thrust a contract at her after such odd questions, smiled faintly when she saw the salary figure written in the compensation section.
It was a thoroughly capitalist smile.
“What exactly will my duties be?”
Watching Ji An’s eyes sparkle with interest, Yeon Ju’s gaze sank even lower.
A child clearly raised with overflowing love—confident, bright, and full of self-worth.
Ji An radiated exactly that.
Seo Yoon had always been lonely, rarely smiled, and was quiet and somber.
Like a sunflower waiting endlessly for sunlight, she’d withered beside Tae Kang Hyun and vanished.
Same age, same face—
but their personalities couldn’t have been more different.
This person must have grown up happy.
Unable to hold back the sudden surge of tears, Yeon Ju lowered her head and hurriedly left the table.
“…Huh?”
“Oh, it’s fine. The work won’t be too difficult. Think of yourself as a personal executive secretary. Technically, I’ll be your direct supervisor, but you’ll mainly carry out tasks assigned by Managing Director Tae Kang Hyun.”
“Typical secretary duties, then?”
“Not exactly typical. You’ll commute to his home rather than the office, and most tasks will be personal rather than professional. For example…”
“For example?”
“Being a companion for conversation.”
Do Seok Won said it with a completely serious face, though the job description could easily sound playful or absurd.
What kind of nonsense is this?
Though she didn’t say it out loud, Ji An’s bewildered expression made her thoughts perfectly clear.
Still, she couldn’t very well claim she didn’t understand the job.
Even after hearing the report that they’d possibly found Seo Yoon’s twin, Kang Hyun’s expression remained unchanged as ever.
When told they planned to hire her as a secretary, he stayed silent. For four years, Kang Hyun had been like a man already dead.
“Am I… being scammed right now?”
“No. Here’s my business card, and this is my employee ID.”
Do Seok Won, Chief Secretary.
Only after verifying the Seo Won logo did Ji An finally lower her guard and carefully examine the contract.
Nothing looked significantly different or suspicious compared to what she’d studied beforehand.
“When can you start work?”
“As soon as I wrap up my part-time job—two weeks should be enough. That… Managing Director Tae Kang Hyun.”
Again.
Her stomach churned as she spoke the unfamiliar name; even her mouth felt oddly dry.
“Yes.”
“I heard about the accident—does ‘conversation companion’ mean…?”
“Oh, his body has fully recovered. Mentally, there’s no major issue either.”
He didn’t want to call Kang Hyun’s emotional void a mental illness.
“But…”
Seok Won gave a bitter smile as he watched Ji An’s wide-eyed anticipation for what came next.
“He lost someone incredibly precious to him, and he’s still in deep pain.”
Someone precious—could it be his father, who’d supposedly died from shock?
“Are there any other special instructions I should know?”
“Please don’t wear perfume when entering the Managing Director’s bedroom.”
Ji An’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
A companion for conversation and no perfume.
The requirements weren’t exactly standard—but considering the salary, which she’d never get elsewhere, the job seemed easy enough.
“Then I’ll take my leave. Please contact me once you’ve finished your part-time work.”
Having completed his business, Seok Won stood up, hesitated briefly over whether to pat Yeon Ju’s back as she emerged from the restroom, then ultimately clenched his hand and left the cafe.
He knew it might be a cruel thing to do—to both Seo Yoon and Ji An—but he wanted to save the living.
She spent a long time agonizing over what to wear.
It wasn’t a corporate office, so she didn’t need to dress too formally—but it was her first day, and the salary was enormous.
After much deliberation, Ji An chose a soft pink casual suit.
It was the same outfit she’d worn to a startup company interview before.
“Honey! Should Dad drive you? You’ve never been to that neighborhood before.”
“No, I’m not a kindergartener—I can find my way. You should get to work too.”
As soon as Ji An stepped out of her room, Do Cheol immediately rose from the sofa, as if he’d been waiting.
“But it’s your first day!”
“You’re really making a fuss! Just let her go alone.”
Jeong Hye appeared after finishing the dishes and scolded her husband—but even her eyes betrayed clear anxiety.
It was excessive worry for a nearly thirty-year-old daughter, no different from when she’d first started part-time work.
But they couldn’t help it—after all, their only child had nearly crossed into the afterlife and returned.
Even now, their trauma was so severe that they’d sneak into her room at dawn just to hold a finger under her nose and check her breathing.
“I’m off!”
Ji An left the house with extra determination in her step.
But after barely squeezing onto the packed subway, she deeply regretted turning down her dad’s offer.
“I guess I have a good sense of direction—I’m finding it pretty easily.”
Despite the complicated route shown on her navigation app, her legs carried her swiftly and smoothly to the destination.
After much difficulty getting past the imposing gates of the luxury apartment complex, Ji An finally passed through the main entrance.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Seo Ji An, starting today as the personal secretary.”
“I’m just someone who helps out around here—you don’t need to be so formal.”
The middle-aged woman, stepping back as Ji An bowed deeply like a freshly disciplined new hire the moment the door opened, waved her hands dismissively.
“Now that the secretary’s here, I’ll head out.”
“Already?”
“I usually only work briefly in the mornings. I stayed longer today just to open the door. The Managing Director’s room is at the end of the hallway. Here’s your card key—the password is 0612. From now on, just let yourself in.”
“Is it really okay to tell me right away? We’ve just met…”
“Director Do instructed me to.”
The helper smiled brightly, picked up her bag, and left, leaving Ji An standing alone, blinking in confusion.
What on earth is this place?!
“If he hasn’t come out by 11 a.m., go into his room and wake him up. His daily routine consists of only two things: two hours of exercise and two hours of company-related work.”
No one had told her what she was supposed to do. She’d gotten a job but had neither tasks nor even a proper handover.
Recalling Seok Won’s last instructions during their final call, she quietly surveyed the spacious but moderately sized home, careful not to make a sound.
Despite the warm tones of cream and soft colors, the entire space felt hollow and cold.
Tick, tick. Following the sound of the clock’s second hand echoing through the silence, Ji An stared blankly at the blue, wave-like movement of the clock face—like an ocean captured within glass.
“Ugh… Is this some kind of hypnosis or what?”
Lost in the steady rhythm of the clock’s hands, Ji An jolted back to awareness.
Feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, she rubbed her neck, then gave in to thirst and headed toward the kitchen.
As she crossed the dining room, she glanced appreciatively at the delicious-looking meal arranged on the island counter.
Beneath a clear plastic cover sat braised short ribs, japchae, miyeok soup, and a few simple side dishes.
It looked exactly like a birthday spread.
That thought held—until she saw the exact same breakfast menu again the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
_____
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